R&D Unit

Some people will rightly focus on implementation, due process, risk mitigation, cost control, and health and safety. But others like to lead a more free-flowing life, and prefer to think outside the box.

Finding and separating the right creative staff from current duties and putting them into a specialised unit will go some way towards unlocking their ability to think about longer term innovation issues, rather than being hobbled by short term day-to-day operational ones.

The concept of a separate R&D unit is used in a variety of businesses, and research evidence shows that it can be a productive way to focus the attention of selected people in the business on future thinking.

Some firms use only their own staff in their R&D unit, but some also recruit big-hitting freelance consultants on regular contracts – for example for a few days a month – keeping costs down and remaining flexible, so the unit can expand or contract as needed.

There is a further advantage to using outsiders: they are not part of the internal culture and systems. By remaining outside they may be better placed to be able to continue to innovate, over a longer period of time, rather than becoming “one of us.”

Managing the right mix of internal and external staff within an R&D unit can create a powerful team for innovation.